15 Cleopatra Beauty Facts That Are Worth Knowing Beauty Secrets

The Queen, known for her captivating beauty, was gradually represented as the femme fatale prototype.

But it was not just her beauty that mesmerized everyone who met her. The real Cleopatra VII was smart, intelligent, and charismatic.

Born in 69 or 70 B.C., Cleopatra VII is known to be one of the most powerful and beautiful women in history. She was the daughter of Ptolemy XII and was the last of the Ptolemaic dynasty. She belonged to a family from Macedonian Greece that took charge of Egypt after Alexander the Great's conquest. Egyptian queen Cleopatra ruled Egypt along with Ptolemy XIII, her brother (whom Cleopatra married), in Alexandria, the knowledge capital of the Mediterranean world of the first century B.C., with a huge library and an abundance of scholars. 

When Cleopatra's father, Ptolemy XII, died, her brother Ptolemy XIII and Cleopatra VII became Egyptian rulers. Later, Ptolemy XIII would build enough political ties to force Cleopatra into exile. Meanwhile, Julius Caesar waged a civil war against Pompey, who had close business relations with Ptolemy XII and sought help from the Ptolemy kids. However, Ptolemy XIII had other plans and decided to side with Caesar and kill Pompey the moment he arrived. 

We know, you must be thinking that is a good thing, right? No, Julius Caesar was, in fact, more furious, and that's when Cleopatra took her chance and convinced Caesar that she was a valuable ally, and thus Julius Caesar helped her defeat her brother who came along the path of the Nile River. As a result, she became the Queen, and that's how Egypt was under Queen Cleopatra's reign for 21 years.

Cleopatra had also fallen in love with Mark Antony and later married and had three children with him. Mark Antony, before their marriage, divorced Octavia, which in turn would backfire as Octavian waged war against Cleopatra and ultimately led to Cleopatra and her Roman lover, Mark Antony committing suicide.

We all know how Cleopatra's beauty was captivating and could make anyone fall for her in just seconds. What could be her secret that the Queen of Egypt beheld that could make even Roman emperor Julius Caesar lovestruck? Let's discover some of the recorded secrets that belonged to this Egyptian Queen, who was known to be the embodiment of Greek Goddess Isis.

If you are someone who enjoys reading facts and is curious about everything you come across, further reads like ariel moon and the architect of the Eiffel tower should be your next stop.

Why was Cleopatra famed for her beauty and intellect?

Cleopatra was said to be one of the most beautiful women in history, while in reality, she was not unconventionally beautiful and looked just like any ordinary woman. But what was fascinating about her was her presence and intellect.

Queen Cleopatra was raised with intensive education on books by the greatest of writers like Homer, Plato, and Aristotle. She was also trained in logical reasoning, making arguments, and was made into a great conversationalist. According to several records, Queen Cleopatra was very charismatic, and everyone who would meet her would be bedazzled by her presence. And not just that, Cleopatra was the smartest of her line and could convince anyone about anything in almost ten different languages.

Cleopatra was, in fact, the first ruler of Egypt from the Ptolemaic kingdom who learned the Egyptian language. She was efficient and worked hard, unlike her predecessors, who never put effort into their rule and least, didn't even bother learning the Egyptian language. Cleopatra was acclaimed as a beauty icon, but in reality, her most powerful asset was her mind.

While describing Queen Cleopatra and her enchanting beauty, historian Plutarch said that she was not extraordinarily beautiful that you could not compare her to anyone else's beauty, but she sure was irresistible. Anyone who would come in contact with Queen Cleopatra would find themselves bewitched. Cleopatra was smart, intelligent, hardworking, and an efficient ruler who had a charismatic aura. 

Okay, now this was way back in time, and quite obviously, they did not have cameras to capture this beauty for future references. But luckily enough, we do have evidence collected from the coin that was minted back in the days when Egypt was ruled under this young Queen. These coins were inscribed with the Queen's face on them, and among all the slight variations of different coins, one thing that was most common among those coins is the prominent nose of their Queen. These illustrations would often portray Queen Cleopatra with a royal diadem with her hair braided in sections into a bun. She would wear magnificent pearl jewelry. According to several other records, Cleopatra also had a broad forehead, sharp chin, and fuller cheeks, and lips with almond eyes and brown eyes. Her features were all softly modulated and were known to be a reflection of her intelligence. 

These features were far from the image of Cleopatra that today's Hollywood movies have created. Now, if you were excited to find out her beauty secrets, let us tell you this, sure we cannot copy someone's mind, but we can make notes on facts about Cleopatra VII's beauty regime, because our Queen did know how to take care of herself. 

What is said that Cleopatra drank to keep its beauty?

Although there is very little evidence of what Cleopatra did for her beauty, we all know for sure that, being a Queen, drinking wine must have been one of her beauty secrets.

Wine has been known widely to be a great friend of our health and skin became of its benefits, of course, used in moderation. Wine, and mostly red wine, has been used by royals and the upper class throughout history and has also been approved by our scientists today. The antioxidants, namely flavonoid, resveratrol, and tannin, in wine that forms during the process of grape fermentation, preserve collagen and elastic fiber and help slow down aging. 

Red wine can also help provide you with a radiant glow through polyphenols that is present in red wine. It can also help in exfoliating by removing dead skin cells, and its antiseptic properties help prevent acne. Red wine can also be great for your hair by restoring your mane and repairing each shaft and making it a great luxury to incorporate into your hair care routine. It can also help you reduce hair fall and dandruff too. 

Our Queen probably already knew about all these benefits and was very fond of red wine. It is even said that she also would bathe in it sometimes. Apart from wine, she would also sometimes bathe in milk with a few saffron threads in it. 

One of the fun facts about Cleopatra also includes the one time when she crushed a big pearl and infused it into her wine goblet and drank it all to win a bet against Mark Antony. 

Cleopatra's favorite wine variant was the Brachetto d'Acqui. So, drinking a glass of red wine can be used as a part of a good skincare routine. 

How did Cleopatra use oil in beauty?

Apart from wine, Cleopatra would also infuse oil into her beauty regime by applying it to her skin.

Oil was a famous ingredient used in several skincare products during the Ptolemaic times. Cleopatra used castor, sesame, and moringa oil that plays a huge role in preventing aging and preserving skin elasticity and thereby preserving their skin's youth. Oils were also infused in different skincare products like soap. The Egyptians used to make a soap paste out of clay and olive oil. This soap helped them nourish and heal their skin.

Cleopatra also used castor oil back in the days when hair and skincare products did not come on advertisements, and 'trend' was not even a concept. Castor oil is known for its benefits as well as the shine it gives out. Queen Cleopatra also used it for her hair care routine to promote hair growth and prevent hair damage. So if you have been struggling with hair fall, the Queen has the answers. Queen Cleopatra also used olive oil for her skin. Olive oil was used as a skin moisturizer to make the skin hydrating and more glorious. 

Queen Cleopatra also loved taking long and relaxing baths. It is famously said that Cleopatra took a lot of milk baths infused with honey and olive oil. The milk, however, that Cleopatra used was donkey milk. Although lesser-known, donkey milk contains a lot of benefits for your skin. It contains vitamin C that can make your skin glow like the heavens, along with casein, lactose, and vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, and vitamin D. It also helps in preventing wrinkles and acne and is a great exfoliator. We know getting your hands on donkey's milk every day isn't as logical as it sounds unless you're Queen Cleopatra, but there are products out there that are made out of donkey milk, or if you can't get hold of donkey milk then cows milk works wonders as well.

What did Cleopatra use for makeup?

Cleopatra also used makeup that was made out of natural products like kohl, almonds, and henna.

Yes, you heard it right. Cleopatra loved wearing makeup and this was not just limited to Cleopatra. Popular Egyptian beliefs involved the use of makeup. These people believed that applying makeup would bring you closer to God. Kohl was among the most popular makeup products in Egyptian culture and is also relevant today. Cleopatra used deep black kohl to define her natural almond eyes. Kohl was also popular as eye protection against the sun and infections. 

Cleopatra also loved playing with colors and used a variety of colored makeup products made from minerals, rocks, and plants. She used a bright green paste made out of mineral malachite for her eyes. Cleopatra also used deep blue eye shadow with tiny gold pyrite flecks that were made from finely crushed lapis lazuli on her upper eyelids. For her lips and cheeks, she used a type of clay that is colored red using iron oxide. 

Our Queen of Nile was also familiar with the goodness of henna and used it as a natural dye for her nails. The henna gave her nails a lovely reddish-brown color hue. And last but not least, Cleopatra also used burnt almonds to fill her eyebrows and paint them in order to look bold and beautiful.

Queen Cleopatra, as we know her, was famous for her beauty and enchanting personality. So enchanting she also made two lovers, Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, from the Roman Republic, fall head over heels for her.

Now obviously, developing a mind like someone else is something really not achievable. However, who says we can't glow like Cleopatra with this amazing skincare routine that held the secrets to the Queen of Nile's looks.

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